Wicked and True (Wicked & Devoted 4)

But if that was true, then who had kidnapped Hallie?

“Well, I—”

“Not on the phone. You’ll send all your answers to our questions to this email. Write it down carefully.” He recited the address and had her read it back. “Don’t use your company email.”

Did he think she was stupid? “Of course not. And once I’ve answered this question, you’ll give me information about my daughter?”

“Absolutely.”

Then the line went dead.

Guiltily, Tessa looked around the office, but she was still alone. No one would see her betray her employer.

Is it really that much of a betrayal? They’re only asking questions that might end up being public knowledge at some point anyway.

True, but rationalizing didn’t help. She still felt guilty, but she swallowed it down for Hallie. She launched her email app on her phone and tapped out the address she’d been given. She drafted an answer, deleted it, and started over several times. Finally, she settled on a reply that provided the most thorough yet neutral information she could think of.

Kimber Edgington was abducted on Monday morning. The ransom demand is a current client’s location. EM Security Management has refused to betray this client and is now attempting to locate Kimber to rescue her. That’s all I know.

With a trembling finger, she sent the email off. Within minutes she had a reply, demanding clarification. So she did her best to answer. No, they weren’t entirely sure who had abducted Kimber. The client in question was late drug dealer Emilo Montilla’s wife. No, she didn’t know where Valeria was right now. No, she didn’t know what attempts her bosses had made to rescue Kimber yet because they’d been out of the office and out of pocket, dealing with the situation.

After nearly thirty minutes of back-and-forth with the emails, she received another. When she opened it, her heart caught, then lifted.

The asshole who had taken her baby had provided a video of Hallie. It was date- and time-stamped a few minutes ago. She was wearing a sweatshirt that looked like it belonged on a little boy, but it was clean and warm. Hallie had a bib covering her chest and was picking up bites of what looked like chicken nuggets and banana from the tray of a clean high chair.

Tessa replayed it three times, tears welling in her eyes and falling down her cheeks before she paused to breathe and pray. Thank God her daughter was okay. At least for now.

But when she wrote back to ask the kidnappers when she would get her daughter back, she got a two-line reply.

We need more information. Stay tuned for further details…

Tessa broke down and sobbed again.

After the high of finding the perfect, dazzling engagement ring for Tessa and dropping a shit ton of money on it, Zy took a call from Kane just as he was leaving the jeweler.

Funny, he’d always thought being the boss would be cushy. Having his pick of assignments sounded great. But the past forty-eight hours had shown him that being in charge wasn’t easy. Coordinating the sisters’ move across state lines and to a new safe house was proving to be a bitch—and this was just one mission. Often, EM Security had several going at once.

As much as he hated to say it, Zy had a new respect for Muñoz and the Edgington brothers. They had backed him into a shitty-as-fuck corner when they’d demanded he prove either Tessa or Trees was their mole, but he understood. They had so many irons in the fire, and they weren’t interested in his feelings, just in getting the job done—and done right. It sucked, but now that he was walking a mile in their boots, he got it. Still hated it, though.

He hadn’t had a chance in the past two days to prove anyone innocent or guilty. Twelve days left before the ax fell. Zy knew he needed to suck it up and get a move on. But he had to get Valeria and her son settled first.

He pulled his phone from his pocket. “What’s up, Kane? Talk to me.”

The guy on the other end sighed. “Don’t worry. We’re okay. But Jorge has been fussy. He’s running a low-grade fever. She thinks he’s coming down with something, and neither of us feels safe enough in the new location for me to leave so I can hit a drugstore.”

Fuck. Zy wanted to get back to the office and check on Tessa. Something was wrong, and everything in his gut told him he shouldn’t let that shit fester. She hadn’t said much when he’d pressed her, but her eyes had begged him for something. Comfort? Solace? Help?

He wished he knew what was going on.

Soon. He’d definitely get to the bottom of it. Right now, duty called. “I’m already out, so I can grab whatever you need. Anything else?”